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Team Members:

James Davis

Polina Osipova

Ravi Wijesekera

Final Project Proposal

Our device will automatically correct balance offsets that are inherent in washing machines which are filled with clothes. The balancing aspect will come into effect during the machine’s spin cycle. Opposing to our prototype, we will move away from Arduino to a smaller microcontroller and will implement the circuit on a real washing machine with added ballasts. The market for this type of idea includes all appliance purchasing consumers. Specifically, this would likely be an option on mid- to high-end machines as the addition of these parts increases the cost to build.

The main goals:

Reach the minimum time frame for the balancing process.

Aim to produce at a reasonable cost.

Make applicable to different washing machines.

Team Structure

Individually: as many as each team member’s schedule allows ( min 2)

Group: 2x a week, 2 hour/session.

Project Timeline

Water is an issue we anticipate might challenge us later on. Initially, the challenge will be keeping the water in the ballasts while in operation. This is a challenge since we’ll be employing a passive system of water retainment. Our current approach will be to use channels to divide the water into manageable portions. Subsequently, once the water is kept in place, the next problem will be removal. At present, the idea is to slow the speed of the machine to a point that facilitates a passive dumping of water from the aforementioned channels.

Phase

Date

Acceptable

Good

Excellent

Project Completion

April 25

The system automatically corrects balance offsets, some instability is present. Minor cosmetic issues. The final report/documentation is completed.

Everything is working as planned (the system automatically corrects balance offsets). Most significant testings are done. The final report/documentation is completed.

Everything is working as planned (the system automatically corrects balance offsets). All testings are done, no defects discovered. The code is optimized and looks neat. The final report/documentation is completed.

Goal 6

4/2

The system is mostly working.

The system is working, mostly stable.

The system is working properly, no instability or defects. Working on the documentation.